Search

This morning was one of those usual mornings where my dad and I would stop by the petrol station before he takes me to work or to the nearest terminal.But it’s not quite the ‘usual morning’ that I thought. After the service crew filled up the fuel tank, my dad rolled down his window and handed him the 1,000 peso bill. As we were waiting for the change, a little boy, roughly around 8-10 years old, appeared beside the window by the driver’s side. He was holding this small plastic blue tray and said in his soft and innocent voice , “Bili na po kayo.”(“Please buy” is the closest translation I could think of. )

I said no to him even though I haven’t even had a glimpse of what he was selling. But he insisted and tried to convinced us once more. I asked what’s on his tray. He said, “puto”(steamed rice cake/muffin) and” kutsinta”(sticky rice cake usually topped with shredded coconut ), which are two of our local desserts . I haven’t had breakfast and though, both are delicious, it was not quite appealing to me that time. As I was about to say my second NO, the boy pleaded again that we buy from him. I don’t know if it was because of his persistence or because of the compassion I felt for him, or because I just wanted to get rid of him so we can finally go, that I told dad to buy the dessert. He said that each cost 5 pesos, which I think is about 11 cents in USD. There were just 4 pieces of puto and 1 kutsinta on his tray, so we decided to buy everything. And after I told him that we were buying ‘everything’, his eyes lit up. His eyes sparkled as he took out a small plastic bag to put all the puto and kutsinta. As my father handed to him the 25-peso coins in exchange of the rice cakes, he gave me and my dad one of the sweetest smiles I have ever seen in my life. He seemed very happy. I told him to go straight home since he’s got no more to sell. Still wearing the big smile on his face, he nodded and walked away from the car looking very happy.

As we drove away, I looked back and watched him as he walked towards the crowd. Then I felt something different… I felt good and bad at the same time. Good because his smile was just beautiful. Bad, because I initially I said NO to him, and second, because a boy his age have to work by selling in the streets. I can’t say which feeling was greater – well probably the ‘feeling bad‘ because I felt a grip in my heart, so I uttered a simple prayer for the boy as we went on our way.

I wondered if he is studying. My dad said, maybe his classes are in the afternoon. Maybe, maybe. I really hope that he is studying.

My dad then recalled his childhood experiences, saying the boy reminded him of it. My father used to sell things also in the streets of Olongapo and Manila, back when he was young.. He didn’t grow up in a wealthy family and was orphaned at a very young age, so life was hard for him. It’s a very long story, but I have to say that both my parents worked very hard to provide us the comfortable lives we have right now.

There were a lot of moments in my life when I realized how blessed I am, but there were also times when I forget and complain nonstop. And lately,I haven’t been counting my blessings and been complaining instead. I think the Tuesday morning incident is one of those moments that God allowed so I can see the realities of life, not to complain more, but also to see that there are things, even the simple ones that I should be grateful for, like that beautiful innocent smile on that boy’s face.

Like this:

“People don’t realize this but loneliness, it’s underrated.” No, I didn’t write it. Yes, it’s from a movie. Doesn’t make it less true.

It’s no secret that I absolutely adore (500) Days of Summer. As a film, it transcends generations through its boldfaced honesty and reaches to the hopeless romantic in each of us. Tom, the hopeful hero of the story, is a character who we all can relate to. Just like him, we’re eventually drawn to the idea of true love at some point in our lives. But that’s through no fault of our own. We’d see it in movies, hear it play on the radio, and read about it in books. We’re exposed to it at such a young age that it becomes more of a goal than our own dreams, which is pretty much what happened to Tom. He’s the only enduring human trait throughout the…

Like this:

I know I haven’t been posting here and one of my last update was that I made a promise that I will write everyday. Well, I was unsuccessful with it. I failed. There are reasons but I will just label them as “my dumb excuses” so I won’t bother enumerating them here. The important thing is I’m back, not only in blogging but also in journaling. Yes, I also haven’t been writing too much in my journal. Though I have some writings saved in my iPad but most where rough drafts that needs rewriting and editing. And that is something I would like to do next, finish them so I could share them here on my blog.

So what am I up to lately?

Well, aside from my day job,I haven’t been doing much. I have been thinking a lot though, and doing a lot of thinking. Too much of it in fact. I am also trying to read, though, until now, I’m not done reading the “BUYOLOGY” book that I started early this year. But I have been reading a lot of articles online, and trying to start other books. Man, there are just too many to read including the blogs I have subscribed to. Information overload.

We just had a long weekend, 4 days, due to Eid and Ninoy Aquino day. But sadly though, aside from watching the latest Bourne movie – The Bourne Legacy, attending service and practices at the church, dusting our house and singing in the karaoke, I haven’t accomplished any, especially in writing. I was hoping I would write more or finish those I have started, but the earth seems to be spinning too fast and I found myself with no more time to sit and write.

But anyways, I have a few writings on my draft right now and I intend to finish them soon so I could start with the others on my queue.

Then, I have been thinking about relationships too. Not the romantic one. Okay, the romantic one also, but that’s a completely different story. Lol. Well, seriously though, this time I am concerned about a platonic relationship with a person very close to me. I treasure our friendship so much, however, there seems to be a problem that I am not quite aware of.

Blogroll

Featured Post

“Travel can become a compulsion. It keeps us away from friends and loved ones – even when we’re back. When I’m away, I often yearn for home. When I’m home, I’m listless. I seem no longer to fit. History and literature are filled with characters who see Asia, or Venice, and can never go […]

(*This is part 2 of 2 of KL Day 3) So that means we walked again. Yeah we love walking under the hot KL sun. And I love sarcasm too. 🙂 We reached the Bird Park which boasts itself for being the world’s biggest walk-in aviary. We handed the ticket that we bought from the […]

(This is the 3rd installment of my trip to KL. I divided it into 2 posts because it’s pretty long as usual. 🙂 This is Part 1 of 2) Saturday – November 19 I was up as early as 7 and started getting ready for our day tour. I went downstairs to join F for […]

Like my birthdays in the past, I made sure I was not in front of my work desk on my birthday this year. It’s sort of a personal tradition to not work (or go to school when I was still a student) on my birthday. No way I’m working like a horse on my day! […]

Like last year, I made a list of what I consider significant events in my life this year. This list is in random order. 1. New Job – After resting for about 6 months from the rat race, I joined a new company again in February 2011. It is one of the known organizations in […]